Sound-reproducing machine.



W; *EL LE-vELANn; souNn REPRoDuclNG MACHINE; APPLICATION hun, MM2. um. v'Haltented Mar. ,5, 1918.

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w. lE; CLEVELAND. Y souNo EPnobuclvNG MACHINE. Amlcmo'n mtu 'MAY z. |911.

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wqs. CLEVELAND.

SOUND REPRGDUCING MACHINE. I

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2. 19H.

1,258, 18.9.v Patented Mar. '5, 1918.

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IfIIIiIIIIIlIHIIII l M n Willard ZWZafaZ AUURNEns 'UN 1TED sTATEs PATENT onirica.

WILLARD E. CLEVELAND, or

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SOUND-REPRODUCING MACHINE.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that L'WILLARD E. CLEVE- My` invention has reference to sound reA e producing machines and itsv purpose is' more particularly to provide an apparatus that is readily-applicable to and used in conjunction with pianosso that a phonograph-mechanism may be used either independently of or in conjunction or harmony with a'piano. A 4more especial purpose of the invention is to afford a novel drivefor controlling mechanism that permits ready application of the device toa piano structure. Another object of -my .improvement resides in the novel construction and relationship of the horn to the record table, so vas to create a maximum of sound volume and clearness in a minimum space and with due regard to the simplicity of ythe construction. To these and other ends the invention consists in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all 'as will'be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features being 'pointed out inthe claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings:

Figure 1v is a front elevation of a piano, with a portion of the case broken awav. and showing the application of a preferred form of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional View on the line Qa-Q of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the upper part of the piano case, with the record table in playing position:

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view showing the position of the record table when out vof operation;

Fig. 5 is a levers;

Fig. 6 is a central vertical sectional view of the record table;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the same partially broken away;

plan view of the keys and key Specification of Letters Patent. Appiication mea May a, l1917.l seriai No. 165,823."V

lPatented Mar. 5, 1918.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the housA ing and horn for the record table;

Fig. 9 isl an enlarged-detail View showing the hinge connection between theltwo parts of the record table;

Fig. 1O1is a sectional vic-.W taken-through the hinge portion of the-'table and showing the latter in its folded andinoperative poi sition, and.

Fig. llis a sectional view of the housing and horn for the record table'.

v Similarreference characters throughout the several views indicate, the same parts.

One ofthe chief objects which I contemplate is to so adapt a sound reproducing machine or phonograph to a piano. as not to.

interfere in any Waywith the arrangement or structure of the latter, mit the phonograph or'parts thereof, to be foldable or movable within the piano case, so that thelatter when closed, mayentirely house the phonograph mechanism: Tluenev are various waysof accomplishing this, and according to the most eficient'plan.'that I have designed, the record table is disposed above the keyboard, in advance-of the Wires and key hammers, from a motor arranged preferably under the keyboard. In the present embodiment, l designates a piano which may be of usual form of upright construction and provided with keys 2 and key levers 3,`the latterj-be'f usual in this class of instruments.

and vfurther to perand is'operated directly Y 4 designates diagrammatically the driv ing motor which ma be electrically or otherwise operated and' is v arranged under the Vl` keyboard as indicated in Fig. 1. The motorf* f 4 drives a vertically arranged shaft 5 which extends -through an opening formed by recesses 6 in a pair of adjacent key levers 3, thence upwardly above the keyboard` carrying at its uppermost end a record table-as shown in Fig. 1. 7 is controlling rod for governing the motor 4 andv extends upwardly through an opening 8 formed 'in the -key levers 3 and having its upper end conveniently located in proximity to the record table as shown in Fig. 3.

It is desirable that the phonographmechanism, that is to say, the motor and reproducing arm andv c'ordinate parts be entirely housed within,the piano case when not in use, and withthis in view, I arrange the vertical shaft 5 within the piano case and employ a foldable record table which can be moved entirely within the case when not in'use. The said table comprises a stationary section 9 `and a movable section 10 that is hinged to it in any'suitable way as by means of lugs 11 and connecting bar 12. The shaft 5 which supports the record table `is arranged behind an opening 13 at the front of the piano case, whichopening may be closed by a slidable door 14. When the door 14 is opened, the movable section 10 of the record table is swung forwardly and projects through said opening to hold a record as ,shown in Fig. 2, and when not in operation,

the movable section 10 is moved rearwardly upon'ffthe stationary section 9 as shown in Fig. 4, thus permitting the door 14 to be closed. y

15 designates the reproducer arm which may be of any conventional type and is connected with ahorn of novel construction that will now beV described. The horn is formed yat one end of a housing, the opposite end of which receives the record table', and comprises a bottom wall 16, rear wall 17 and end wall 18, the openings 19 and 20 bein provided to receive theshaft and rod aforementioned.. The horn includesa sound receiving and conducting passage consisting of an inlet portion 21 and outlet portion 22 arranged preferably adjacent to one another and extending alternately in opposite directions. The inlet portion 21 of the sound passage is formed by bottom wall 23, side walls 24, top wall 25 and end walls 26 and 27a, the latter being curved and serving as a detlector for transferring the sound readily from the inletportion 21 to the outlet portion 22. The inlet and outlet portions of the passage are separated from each otherpreferably by the aforementioned wall 25, which slants away from the bottom wall 23* so as toV give the inlet portion of the passage a constantly increasing cross sectional area. The outlet portion 22 of the sound conducting passage is formed by Athe side walls 24, bottom wall 25 and up wardly slanting wall 26, giving an arrangement that afords a constantly increasing vcross section and terminating in ,a large mouth from which the sound is finally discharged. The reproducer arm 15 is connected with theinlet portion 21 through opening 27, whereby the sounds are conducted alon the inlet portion of vthe passage in one irection and are then deected by the wall 27*a and carried in a reverse direction along passage 22, and finally emitted from the mouth of the horn directly into the from the machine by thew'alls 17 and 18.

With an instrument arranged as described above, sounds `from a record will be thrown into a room in the direction of or to approximately the point of location of a person engaged in playing apiano, and this permits a very successful combination-of music from lthe piano `and from the phonograph, one accompanying the-other. Thus the effect can readily be created of a person singing, and at the same time playing the song accompaniment, yand the singing tones, while seeming to emanate from the piano operator, actually come from the phonograph mechanisrn.

l claim as my invention:

1. 1n a sound reproducing machine, the combination with a piano keyboard, of a record table disposed above thekeyboard. a motor located beneath the keyboard, and a vertically arranged motor driven shaft extending from beneath the keyboard upwardly above the keyboard and supporting said record table at its upper end.

2. 1n a sound reproducing machine, the

combination with a piano keyboard and key levers, of av record table disposed above theV keyboard, a motor located beneath the keyboard, and a vertically arranged motor driven shaft extending through an opening formed by recesses in a pair of adjacent key levers, the shaft extending from beneath the keyboard upwardly above the keyboard anl supporting said record table at its upper en 3. 1n a sound reproducing machine, the combination with a case havin-2 an opening at its front, of a record table'which projects partially through the opening when in playing position and is foldable within the case when not in operation.

4. 1n a sound reproducing machine, the combination with a case having an' opening at its front, of a record table comprising two sections, one of which is foldable upon the other and movable toa position partially outside the case when in playing position Aing a record table which is'collapsible when not in use.

WILLARD E. cLEvELAND. 

